iPad 2 Leaks Trio Sent To Prison In China

A Chinese court sentenced three people to prison after they were found guilty of having revealed iPad 2 trade secrets.

The three persons, Xiao Chengsong, Lin Kecheng and Hou Pengna, will have to spend the next 18 months, 14 months and 12 months respectively in prison. Lin Kecheng was working for Foxconn, one of Apple’s Chinese suppliers, at the time the crime occurred, Cnet reports.

This is not the first time Foxconn has made the newspaper headlines. An explosion took place at its manufacturing facilities early this year killing three workers and injuring another 15. Moreover, Foxconn captured the media attention last year after several workers committed suicide.

It was originally though all three persons were working at Foxconn when the information leak occurred, however, Chengsong was working as a general manager in an accessory shop from nearby and was not a Foxconn employee. Chengsong is suspected of having offered money to Kecheng to snap photos of the iPad 2’s hardware.

The three culprits must also pay various fines, apart from the time they must serve in prison. Chengsong was the one who received the highest fine since he was considered the main instigator - having to pay around $ 23,140 for his misdeeds.

Perhaps leaked photos and the like of iPad and iPhone models in production will be a bit harder to come by in the future.